Liberals know what their carbon tax will cost you – but they won’t tell you

Last year, I filed an order paper question, asking if Finance Canada had an analysis of the impact of the carbon tax on low-income families The department responded with nothing, suggesting it had done no such analysis However, a note to the Deputy Minister of Finance, obtained through access to information refers to a table that estimates the impact of the carbon price “across earnings groups.” That table is broken down by income quintile; however, all the numbers are blacked out. Why is the government blacking out and covering the impact of its carbon tax on the poorest Canadians? Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to talk about the impact of the taxes that we have actually reduced on Canadian families. I am pleased to talk about the impact on Canadian families of the introduction of the Canada child benefit Those specific numbers are important: for the single family, with a reduction in middle-class taxes $330 more for that person this year For the family, $540 in reduction in taxes; for the nine out of 10 families that got the Canada child benefit, an average of $2,300 more per year after taxes. These are very important measures. We know that, together with the efforts we are making on the environment, we can make a real difference for Canadians The measure of a society is how it treats its most vulnerable That is why I asked how it is this carbon tax will impact on the poorest Canadians. At first, the government said, “No such data exists.” Then it said, “It exists; we just don’t want to tell you what it says” That is the current position of the government, that it wants to keep secret from Canadians, the most vulnerable Canadians, those with the least, the impact of this heavy new carbon tax on heat, hydro, gas, and electricity. Is that what it meant when it promised it wanted to help those trying to join the middle class? Mr. Speaker, we meant exactly what we said. We want to help those trying to join the middle class and those in the middle class That is why our policies have been specifically directed to help those who are most vulnerable in our society, to help middle-class Canadians to be in a better situation We have done it in a myriad ways. We have done it through tax reductions. We have done it through the introduction of the Canada child benefit. We have helped lower-income and middle-income students to have 50% more money for grants for university. And we have helped those most vulnerable in our society the seniors who are below the poverty line, with a 10% increase in the guaranteed income supplement for single seniors. We are making a real difference, in particular, for those most…